New Delhi, Jan. 29 -- Patients saved Rs.16,000 crore under the government's flagship Pradhan Mantri National Dialysis Programme (PMNDP), meant for ensuring free dialysis to eligible beneficiaries in all district hospitals across the country.

Under the scheme, 2.649 million kidney patients have been covered, with 31.7 million dialysis sessions conducted so far, the government said on Wednesday.

Dialysis, a treatment for kidney failure, removes waste from the blood. The programme was rolled out in 2016 as part of the National Health Mission (NHM).

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"Under PMNDP, 36 states are covered with 748 districts. We have established 1,575 dialysis centres ac...